1820 United States Federal Census

The United States Census of 1820, conducted on August 7, 1820, determined the population to be 9,638,453, of which 1,538,022 were slaves.

This census (1820) provides names for heads of household, for about 10 to 15 percent of the population, and provides only a number count for the others.

Federal census takers were asked to record information about every person who was in each household on the census day. A census taker might have visited a house on a later date, but the information he collected was supposed to be about the people who were in the house on the census day. The basic census enumeration unit was the county. Each county was divided into enumeration districts, one for each enumerator. The completed forms were sent to the Commerce Department's Census Office in Washington, D.C.

Federal censuses are usually reliable, depending on the knowledge of the informant and the care of the census enumerator. Information may have been given to a census taker by any member of the family or by a neighbor. Some information may have been incorrect or deliberately falsified.

Original data: United States of America, Bureau of the Census. Fourth Census of the United States, 1820. Washington, D.C.: National Archives and Records Administration microfilm publication M33, 142 rolls.